ABCNews.com is marking its tenth anniversary with a bold new redesign that features increased use of video. Beyond the new skin there's not a lot that's new with one key exception - ABC is opening up to contributions from citizen journalists.
According to Michael Clemente, Senior Executive Producer, the new site, which it launched last night, is designed to harness the power of what they call "citizen reporters." Viewers and readers can now help ABC help report the news by feeding in news and leaving comments. The new site also supports video uploads from cell phones and video cameras, some of which will make it on to air.
ABC isn't going as far as the BBC, which allows remixing, or USA Today, which turned its site into a social network. However, it's certainly a step in the right direction. The comments that are streaming in (118 as of this writing) are mixed and mostly focus on the design, not the ability to contribute.
